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Logline

Coerced: How the banks failed domestic violence survivors tells the story of the economic abuse domestic violence survivors face daily and the plight to pass NYS’s first coerced debt bill.

Synopsis

Economic abuse impacts 99% of domestic violence survivors and is a primary driver of homelessness in America, yet it remains largely unacknowledged. One particularly egregious form of economic abuse is coerced debt.

Coerced debt occurs when individuals are forced or threatened into assuming debt.

The film opens with the end of the legislative session, where a bill aimed at tackling coerced debt in New York State was defeated by a coalition of banks on the final day. Advocates highlight that passing the bill would have made New York the fifth state to implement crucial legal protections.

We are uncertain how the banks became aware of this bill or why they allowed it to pass the senate only to stall in the assembly, but we have our suspicions. An assembly member suggested that a single individual known as the “central staff,” who holds significant influence despite not being elected, ultimately decides. Could this person have ties to one of the banks? We intend to investigate further.

The legislative journey of the bill is recounted with frustration and determination through an advocate, a survivor and an assemblymember. This short documentary unfolds through textured light-based animation and interviews chronicling the bill’s progress through Congress, highlighting the opposition it encountered and the determined efforts of its sponsors in the assembly to secure its passage. Overall, the film highlights the challenges and importance of addressing economic abuse, coerced debt, and its impact on vulnerable populations.
 

Meet the Filmmakers

blair dorosh-walther – Director/Producer
blair dorosh-walther, LMSW, is a Guggenheim Fellow and acclaimed documentary filmmaker who resides at the crossroads of activism + art. They directed the award-winning, feature documentary Out in the Night, which tells the story of four Black Queer women who fought back after a night demanding self-defense – and the backlash that ensued. In 2014, which premiered at the LA Film Festival and garnered over a dozen awards. In 2015, it had its’ national broadcast on POV. Through this film, blair collaborated with the United Nations Free & Equal campaign to combat homophobia and transphobia globally. In 2022, blair produced After Sherman, another POV documentary, is a personal essay by director Jon-Sesrie Goff, who patches through time by speaking with his father, friends, and neighbors to tell the history of the Gullah community. As a social worker, blair focuses on economic justice and housing policy in NYC, and co-authored the report, “Reinvesting in Economic Justice, Equity, and Solidarity for Survivors,” advocating for legislative changes.

Kelly Gallagher – Animator
Kelly Gallagher is a filmmaker, animator, and Associate Professor of Film at Syracuse University. Her handcrafted films and commissioned animations have screened at venues including: the Museum of Modern Art, the National Gallery of Art, Sundance Film Festival, Tribeca Film Festival, and the Smithsonian Institution. Recent commissioned animations have screened on Netflix and PBS. She’s presented solo programs of her work at institutions including: SFMOMA, Close-Up Cinema London, SF Cinematheque, and Wexner Center for the Arts. She is the 2022 recipient of the Helen Hill Award from NYU’s Orphan Film Symposium. Her latest film, We Had Each Other, about the strength and solidarity of Irish Republican POW women, won the Research Award at the 2022 Athens International Film and Video Festival. Kelly enthusiastically organizes and facilitates fun and inclusive film workshops and camps for communities of all ages, from Kentucky to California, from New York to Iowa and beyond.

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Contact

For inquiries, please contact fiscalsponsorship@filmindependent.org.